Mandarin immersion school list
Please find below a list of current programs as of February 1, 2024. There are now 394 schools that I’m aware of in the United States that have Mandarin immersion programs.
And special thanks to districts that list the schools where their programs will go in sixth and twelfth grade. It’s often impossible to find this out on many district websites.
Here’s the latest list:
[Please note, the version I posted on Thursday somehow didn’t come through fully, but I believe this one did.] To see the list, click the link above. It will download to your computer and you can open the file there. There are also tabs at the bottom for international programs and Cantonese programs.
Updated as of February 1, 2024
ADDITIONS
Pacific Academy
Private
Costa Mesa, CA K – 8
Launched 2023 – 2023
Global Citizens Public Charter School
Washington DC
Charter, K – 5
Opened 2022-2023
Also offers Spanish immersion
Baton Rouge Foreign Language Academic Immersion Magnet (FLAIM)
East Baton Rouge Parish School System
Baton Rouge, LA
K – 5
Opened 2015-2016
Barrington High School
Barrington School District
Public, 9 – 12
Barrington, IL
Began 2019-2020
Triad International Studies Academy
North Carolina
Greensboro, NC
K – 8
To open 2025-2026
MOVES
Portland, Oregon
Portland Public Schools – Lots of movement
The Mandarin immersion program that was once at Harrison Park Elementary has moved to Clark Elementary.
Harrison Park is now a middle school and hosts the Mandarin immersion students who have completed the programs at Clark Elementary and Woodstock Elementary.
Hosford Middle School, which formerly took MI students from Woodstock no longer does as those students now go to Harrison Park Middle School.
Jefferson High School added classes for students coming from Portland’s Mandarin immersion schools.
CLOSURES
Camelot Academy of Arts, Science and Technology
Esplanade, CA
They don’t appear to offer Mandarin immersion anymore so I’ve removed them from the list.
Dutchtown Elementary School
Henry County Schools
Hampton, GA
Opened in 2013-2014, can’t tell when they ended it.
Box Canyon Utah
Blue Valley Utah
Valley Park Elementary School
Programs ”sunsetting” due to low enrollment.
Kensington Elementary
Union County Public Schools
Waxhaw, NC
Program phasing out in 2023-2023, Spanish phasing in.
===
This list is available to those using it for non-commercial purposes (i.e. parents to find schools and academics doing research.) If you are interested in using it for your business, please contact me at immersioneducation (at) gmail (dot) com. I have it available with school addresses and phone numbers.
As always, please tell me if you know of a school that’s not listed here and should be, or one whose listing contains errors. I strive to keep the list as up-to-date as possible but don’t always hear about new schools or changes.
Please note that the list doesn’t include preschools, only elementary, middle and high schools.
I use the Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition (CARLA) definition of immersion. This is that at least 50% of the day in elementary school is taught in Mandarin and that academic subjects are taught in Mandarin, not simply that Mandarin is taught. I do include a few schools that offer triple immersion, using English, Mandarin and a third language.
Note that the 50% rule only applies to K-5 schools. For middle and high school programs, they simply need to be continuations of an elementary school immersion program. Most offer one or two classes per day or Mandarin immersion students, so typically 20% or 30% of the day is taught in Mandarin.
In the column listing grades offered, 0 = Kindergarten. That way it’s easier to sort by grade, Excel didn’t know what to do with K’s. So 0 – 5 means the school offers immersion in Kindergarten through fifth grade.
Thanks
Elizabeth Weise, author, A Parent’s Guide to Mandarin Immersion
immersioneducation (at) gmail (dot) com
=====
If your school is not listed or is listed incorrectly,
Please refer to the list of questions below. Answer as many of them as you can and email me and I’ll update the list. If you don’t know all the answers, don’t worry. I’d rather list a school even with a few boxes empty!
School Name
School District name
Address
City
State
Phone
Grades at school
Public/private/charter?
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool)
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English.
Whole school or strand within a school?
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]
Website address.
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.)
Trackbacks
- Mandarin immersion school list posted « Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Two new Mandarin immersion schools added to list « Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Wow! New map shows all the Mandarin immersion programs in US « Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Mandarin Immersion Schools: Where We Stand in 2013 | Parents of African American Students Studying Chinese
- Chinese School: A List of Chinese Immersion Schools Across the Country
- Full list of Mandarin immersion schools updated | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Mandarin immersion schools in the United States in 2014 | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- How one district helps new teachers get settled | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- What Kind of Language Program Should My Kids Take? - Where are we going, dad?
- We’re up to 190 Mandarin immersion programs in the US! | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Alameda County renews Yu Ming’s charter by 7-0 vote | Yu Ming Charter School 育明
- The state of Mandarin Immersion in 2017 | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- The state of Mandarin Immersion: November 2017 | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Nine Features of High-Quality Language Immersion Programs | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Mandarin immersion schools in New York City | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Teach Your Child a Second Language at Home with 5 Key Steps
- How To Find A Foreign Language Teacher For Your Child • CHALK
- 3 Ways to Teach Kids a New Language - CorporetteMoms
- The State of Mandarin Immersion in the United States: June 2019 | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Are Chinese-English Bilingual Schools the Future of Primary Education? | Dynamic Language
- Finding and enrolling your kids in a Mandarin immersion public school - Chinese Speaking Kids
- Mandarin immersion programs in the LA Area - Chinese Speaking Kids
- Preparing You and Your Child for Mandarin Immersion Programs – Little Chinese Readers
- Mandarin immersion schools in the United States, 1981 – 2022: An update | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Mandarin immersion school list updated: 343 schools open or opening within another year | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- We’re up to 280 Mandarin immersion schools in the United States! | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Newly updated Mandarin immersion school list posted | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
- Newly updated Mandarin immersion school list | Mandarin Immersion Parents Council
Mandarin Immersion Parents Council 
I read with interest the article in the Wall Street Journal which lead me to this website and your listing of Chinese immersion schools.
My children attended the Chinese International School in Hong Kong, http://www.cis.edu.hk/. Each of my daughters studied at CIS for 14 years. As Eurasians, half Chinese / half British, born and educated in Hong Kong and having both obtained the International Baccularete after graduating high school, both were offered places at prestigious universities in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia. For their own reasons, possibily to discover their British heritage, both elected to do their undergraduate degrees in Britain. Whilst my youngest daughter is about to start the last year of her degree, my eldest daughter who completed her post graduate studies is now an attorney (solicitor) based in Hong Kong for an international law firm.
There are now several international (private fee paying school) schools in Hong Kong which follow the CIS model of full teaching in dual language, rather than offering Chinese as a second or third language. CIS celebrated it’s 25th anniversary a few years ago and whilst you are all embarking upon a challenging and difficult route for your children, it is a rewarding one and one with a very positive future for your children as the Hong Kong (and other similar schools through out Asia) experience shows.
It’s very thoughtful of you to take the time to encourage other parents and thus children. Thank you.
Also add All Soul’s Catholic School in Alhambra, CA
Beaufort County School District, SC. has K-3 at Broad River Elementary School and 1-3 at Hilton Head Island Elementary School.
Don’t forget to add – under international – Calgary, AB
http://www.cbe.ab.ca/programs/languages/chinese.asp
Done!
Add Camelot Academy in Orange Ca
Preschool to 6 th grade immersion in mandarin
3 rd and up all do violin Latin great books all kids in choir
Uses Shahghai Math ,Meizhou Chinese, world history is taught in Chinese
Chinese Great books
Please correct information for Yu Ming Charter School.
1. It has approval from Alameda County, not belonging to Alameda unified school district
2. Address is wrong. Correct address is 1086 Alcatraz Avenue, Oakland, CA 94608
Thanks.
Palm Bay Academy Charter School in Florida has a K-5 program
http://www.palmbayacademy.org
Immersion Elementary K through 5
1464 Troutman Boulevard
Palm Bay, FL 32905
ph: 321.723.4218 fax: 321.953.5160
According to their website, they only teach an hour and a half a day of Chinese, which becomes less in grades 4 and up, and they don’t teach content in Chinese. This would make them a FLES (Foreign Language in Elementary School) program, but not immersion. I’ll call the school to confirm.
Full Immersion School in Shanghai
School Name – Montessori Children’s Academy
Address- 56 Ling Shan Road /2000 Lane
City-200136 Shanghai / China
Phone- +86 21 5074 5472
E-mail- monteacademy2005@yahoo.com
1,8 – 7 years
Established in 2005
100% Mandarin per day
5 Full immersion Mandarin classes, 1 full immersion English class
We teach simplified characters
http://www.montekinder.com
Does anyone know of good immersion programs in Hong Kong other than Chinese International School (CIS), ISF and Singapore International School?
Thanks!
Besides the ones that you have listed, there are also:
Hong Kong Academy http://www.hkacademy.edu.hk
The Canadian International School http://www.cdnis.edu.hk (perhaps not fully immersive but the Mandarin programme is well respected)
Kiangsu & Chekiang http://www.kcis.edu.hk
Victoria Shanghai Academy http://www.vsa.edu.hk/en/
Yew Chung International School http://www.ycis-hk.com (I understand they have campuses in North America)
For those who may not be familiar with the three schools that you have mentioned, I also list those below. My two daughter went from Reception to Year 13 at Chinese International School and it more than achieved what we sought for our girls in terms of bi and tri lingual education. Having completed University studies overseas, both have chosen to return to Hong Kong where they are working professionals.
Chinese International school https://www.cis.edu.hk
The ISF Academy http://www.isf.edu.hk/en
The Singapore International School http://www.singapore.edu.hk
There are other schools which offer Mandarin programmes, but the above are probably the most immersive. Hong Kong, because of its relatively high expatriate population has many other international schools offering education in German, French, Norwegian, etc.
YCIS, a part of the Yew Chung Education Foundation with an 85-year history in Hong Kong, only has one campus in the US in Silicon Valley.
I recently found another good resource for advocacy and education. http://www.chccsmdl.com
Yes: You want the Suzhe School. My kids both attended for years when we lived in HK, and it prepared them well for public schools in China. It is on HK Island:
http://www.kcs.edu.hk/
Good luck!
Nathan
Why aren’t Chinese language immersion schools in China included? There are several good ones.
No one has sent me a list and as I don’t live there it’s difficult to gather the information. Would you like to help create one?
Please add-
Kensington Elementary and Marvin Elementary, both in Waxhaw, NC
Union County Public Schools, Union County, NC
Program is K-5 at each school, but currently K-2 and K-1.
Started in 2012 at Marvin and 2013 at Kensington.
Day is 90/10 to 75/25 (Mandarin/English)
Strand within the school. One classroom per grade.
24 students in Kindergarten classes.
kees.ucps.k12.nc.us
Mandarin is the only immersion language in these schools. Other schools in district offer Spanish immersion
Offered thru/with VIF Splash immersion out of Chapel Hill, NC.
Yup, they’re on the list. Though I had Marvin Elementary in Marvin, NC as that’s what the school’s website says. Is it not in the town of Marvin?
It is in the town of Marvin. Thank you!
The new website for the maps is http://mandarintreehouse.com please check it out!
Please add a new mandarin immersion school in Redwood City,CA. The program will start next school year 2015. The enrollment begins Sat 11/8. Please visit http://rwcmandarin.blogspot.com/2014/10/program-approved-and-school.html?m=1 for enrollment details. We welcome every family whether you reside in Redwood City school district or not.
School Name: John Gill School
School District name: Redwood City scholl district
Address: 555 Avenue Del Ora
City: Redwood City
State:CA
Phone
Grades at school: K-5 (possibly TK)
Public/private/charter?: public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool): Fall 2015
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English.: K-1 80% 20%
Whole school or strand within a school?
: strand within a school
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]: Simplified
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade.: Expected 2 classroom / grades depending on the enrollment.
One-way or two-way immersion?
Website address.: http://rwcmandarin.blogspot.com
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.): N/A
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium?
My wife is a Chinese national (from Xinjiang). She is currently enrolled at Davis and Elkins College in West Virginia, Her major is Math Education. She is a junior with a GPA of 3.92. We are looking for scholarship / grant help as she doesn’t qualify for normal grants and scholarships due to her not being a US citizen.
When she graduates, she will be certified to teach Math (5-adults), Chemistry, and Chinese. She will be looking for a teaching position. We are more than willing to relocate.
Any ideas?
Our elementary school, located in Laguna Niguel, CA, is always looking for teachers since our program is relatively new and continues to grow each year. We are in the Capo Unified School District and you can look them up to see what their hiring process is.
To Richard Aunkst, I am the principal of a K-6 Dual Language Immersion School in Arizona. We are looking for a Chinese side teacher to teach math, science and Mandarin Language Arts for 2015-16 school year. It would be a second grade position. If your wife would be interested please email me at: Mai-Lon.Wong@husd.org.
Hi!!!! My son is in first grade now and he started mandarin immersion in KG in San Diego. We are moving to Alburqueque New Mexico and I need information for schools that offer the program. Can you please help me?? Thanks
Unfortunately, I don’t believe there are any Mandarin immersion programs in New Mexico. Parents–tell me if I’m wrong!
Avenues:The World School in New York is a 50% Mandarin immersion starting at Nursery (3’s)
How do I find Saturday Mandarin schools or classes? Particularly near Northville, Michigan?
Atlanta Trilingual Academy opened another campus in smyrna, ga. They do offer preschool. My son is 2 and he attends this school. I am wondering if you have come across any immersion schools in south florida? (From west palm area to Miami). Im desperately searching for something like ATA as we may have to relocate.
Your list is a great tool for parents. Thank you for that.
Susan.
Hello,
My name is Susan Acker and I am the Director of MindBloom Preschool. A parent in our program sent me information about this site to add our school, but I could not find an email address to email details to the moderator. Please forgive me for posting this information to the forum, but please see details below.
Thank you,
Susan Acker
School Name MindBloom Preschool
School District name Located in Ward 5 of Washington, DC
Address 2420 Rhode Island Avenue, NE
City Washington
State DC
Phone 202-681-2013
Grades at school Pre-K Only
Public/private/charter? Private and unaffiliated with the public or charter school systems
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool) N/A
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 90% at least
Whole school or strand within a school? One strand
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)] Simplified
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. One Mandarin classroom
One-way or two-way immersion? One-way immersion
Website address. http://www.mindbloompreschool.com
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.) Spanish, with japanese and Arabic coming.
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium? No
Sorry, I didn’t capitalize the “J” in “Japanese” on my former posting…
Thanks. I don’t list preschools on the school list, though. Only K-12
Please add our school to your list – Thank you – Tracy Glick, Global Business Magnet Advisor
School Name Weaver Elementary
School District name Garland ISD
Address 805 Pleasant Valley Road
City Garland
State TX, 75040
Phone 972-494-8311
Grades at school pre-k to grade 5
Public/private/charter? public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool) opens August, 2015
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 50/50
Whole school or strand within a school? strand
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)] ?
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. 22 K, 22 1st for 2015-16
One-way or two-way immersion? one-way
Website address. http://www.garlandisdschools.net/page.cfm?p=4056
Garland ISD: Mandarin Chinese Language & Leadership
Mandarin Chinese Language & Leadership – Garland ISD
Read more…
Remove preview
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.)
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium? no
Please add our school:
YingHua International School
33 River Road
Princeton, NJ 08540
(609) 375-8015
Preschool (age 2.5 years old) through 8th Grade
Private
Founded 2007
We follow the full immersion model: 100% Mandarin instruction for preschool through Kindergarten; 90% Mandarin for 1st grade; 80% for 2nd grade; and so on until 50% Mandarin for 5th grade and above
Whole school
Simplified Characters
1 class per grade, up to 14 students per class
Two-way immersion
http://www.yhis.org
no other languages offered
not part of the flag ship program
Accredited by the MSA-CESS
Candidate school for the International Baccalaureate PYP Programme
Contact: Kristin Epstein, Executive Director
director@yhis.org
I fixed the ZIP code and updated that you’re K – 8, I had you as K-5 before. Thanks,
Beth
There is also Sunrise Drive Elementary School in Tucson AZ that started offering Mandarin Immersion 2 years ago. (Their address: 5301 E Sunrise Dr, Tucson, AZ 85718)
Are there any programs near Goshen, Indiana or the surrounding area? My daughter is in a 50% Mandarin program currently and we are considering a move to that are and would like to continue her studies. ~ Thank you
I know this thread is for Full Immersion Mandarin schools. Is there Full Immersion Cantonese school. I’m looking for one in Arizona. Thanks!
None that I know of. The only Cantonese immersion schools I know of are in San Francisco and Sacramento.
Great list!
Correction: Mandarin Language Academy in Lakeside is actually Riverview International Academy. Name changed when the charter ended.
Addition: Pacific Beach Middle School, 4676 Ingraham St., San Diego, CA 92109, 858-273-9070, grades 6-8, public, immersion program begins 9/8/15, 2 periods per day (1 MLA, 1 core subject), strand, 1 classroom?? (haven’t seen enrollment #s, will be more next year), 1 way immersion, http://www.sandi.net/pbmiddle
Addition: Tierra del Sol Middle School, Lakeside, CA 92109, 858-273-9070, grades 6-8, public, http://www.lsusd.net/Domain/84, immersion program begins 9/8/15, 2 periods per day (1 MLA, 1 core subject), strand, 1 classroom?? (haven’t seen enrollment #s, will be more next year), 1 way immersion
Very helpful. Many thanks.
Hi Elizabeth. Thanks for your efforts in compiling such a through list. An update for my daughter’s school as they are now in a more permanent location.
Jing Mei Elementary
12635 SE 56th St.
Bellevue WA 97006
Also note that the phone number stayed the same, but the area code is listed incorrectly. Should be 425.
Regards!
fixed!
I don’t know if it’s just me (because I’m located in China) or if there’s a problem but I can’t seem to open http://www.mandarintreehouse.com/
I’m looking for immersion schools in the Los Angeles/ Orange county area of Southern California that has openings for 2nd grade. My daughter was born in China and has attended public school in China but since we’re moving back to my home I need to find a program that she’ll feel comfortable in as a Chinese Born American with a mixed race.
Fletcher Elementary in Orange Unified School District (Orange County) accepts students 2nd-4th grade individually pending a fluency evaluation. Contact Principal Rebeca Nelson at rnelson@orangeusd.org 🙂
Renascence School International is a great trilingual immersion school, plus they specialize in advance academics. Just to give you an example, my 3rd and 4th grader are already learning biology and physics – plus equations using period table. Its such an awesome school, please check them out. They are located in Costa Mesa, CA.
Have you checked out Marian Bergeson Elementary School in Laguna Niguel (Orange County, Capistrano Unified School District)?
School Name: Pacific Beach Middle: An International Baccalaureate World School
School District name: San Diego Unified
Address: 4676 Ingraham St.
City: San Diego
State: California
Phone: 858-273-9070
Grades at school: 6, 7, 8
Public/private/charter? Public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool): 2015-2016
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English: 33%
Whole school or strand within a school? Whole-school for qualified students
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)] Simplified
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade: 2 (starting with 6th grade and adding each year)
One-way or two-way immersion? one-way
Website address: http://www.sandi.net/pbmiddle
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.) Mandarin Chinese Intro, 1-2, 3-4 Spanish for beginners Intro, 1-2, 3-4, and Spanish for Spanish Speakers Intro, 1-2, 3-4
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium?
Other: Confucius Classroom; International Baccalaureate Middle Years Program, Pathway Barnard Pacific Asian Language Academy, Pacific Beach Middle IB World School, as students articulate SDUSD Mandarin Immersion program will grow to include Mission Bay High IB World School IB Diploma Program
Thanks. On the list.
My daughter is in a Mandarin Immersion school. It is not on your MIP list. Stough Elementary School currently has K and 1st grade Mandarin Immersion. Next year there will be K-2. Public school.
Please ADD. Thank you! I am a parent that has a child going to Gateway
School Name: Gateway School of Language and Culture
School District name: West Ada
Address:10901 McMillan Rd.,
City: Boise
State: ID 83713
Phone: 208-855-4475
Grades at school: K – 5
Public/private/charter? Magnet
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool): 2011
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. – 50%
Whole school or strand within a school? Immersion program within School
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. 1 class per grade except 4 th & 5th combied
One-way or two-way immersion?
Website address. http://www.westada.org/Gateway
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium? No
There is a Mandarin Immersion program at Oakley Elementary School in Fulton County, Union City, Georgia, 30291. It is a public school that opened fall 2015 with Kindergarten.
http://school.fultonschools.org/es/oakley/Pages/Chinese-Mandarin-Dual-Immersion.aspx
Thanks for this growing list!
School name: Broadway Elementary in LA Unified school district. I went to the school three weeks ago, and the principal told me they are now one-way Mandarin immersion rather than two-way.
Another school: Field Elementary in Pasadena is actually named Eugene Field Elementary School. When I looked for their School Accountability Report Card in California Department of Education, I was not able to find it if I only type in “Field”. According to my on-site observation couple weeks ago, the Mandarin coordinator told me that they are one-way rather than two-way, due to the lack of native Mandarin speakers enrolled in the school. So basically there are only one large language group (Native English speakers) learning Mandarin. Same reason as Broadway that I mentioned above.
By the way, thank you so much Elizabeth. I appreciate for your dedication in Mandarin immersion program. I am currently doing my Mandarin immersion research for my MA thesis. Your information helped me A LOTTTTTT!!!!
Hi Allie,
Thanks for these updates. I expect that many of the schools that say they’re two-way are in fact de facto one-way because they have very few native Chinese speakers. I’d be curious to hear if schools are considering Cantonese speakers in the native speaker for Mandarin immersion programs, or if they only consider Mandarin speakers as native. And please send along your research when it’s done, I’d love to read it.
Beth
The school’s been on my list for a few years. Tell us about it? What’s it like? Are you pleased?
I think schools are considering Cantonese speakers as “partial” native speakers for the Mandarin immersion program, as you might know that Cantonese and Mandarin are using the similar writing system (traditional or simplified) while the oral speaking is mutually unintelligible.
My MA research is focusing on exploring the key factors that impact the model selection and implementation of a 90:10 or 50:50 Mandarin immersion program. Do you have any idea or any related academic articles in mind?
Since I just started the volunteering in one of the schools, I am not quite familiar with the schools yet. I will say Broadway Elementary is a very academically rigorous Mandarin program. For Field Elementary, I think 90:10 model is not very common for Mandarin immersion programs in at least Southern California, we need more research on the 90:10 Mandarin immersion programs.
International Montessori Academy (soon will be The International Academy)
Address: 14929 SE allen rd, Bellevue, WA
Phone: 425-223-5798
Private school
Grade 18m – 6th grade
Language offered: Mandarin and Spanish
Simplified Chinese
Mandarin 50-100% depending on age
Please add us to your list. We don’t currently have elementary level, but we are adding one starting 2016-2017 school year.
Thank you!
Barrington Consolidated 220 School District offers mandarin immersion at four schools.
Barbara Rose: you have the info
Countryside: you have the info
North Barrington Elementary
310 North Highway 59 North Barrington, IL 60010
http://www.barrington220.org/north
Program began last year in kindergarten. current cohort is in first grade. there will be two grade levels in mandarin immersion program thru to fifth grade.
simplified mandarin/ taught 50/50
Early Learning Center
Barrington Early Learning Center
40 E. Dundee Road
Barrington, IL 60010
http://www.barrington220.org/elc
Program at this school is kindergarten only. Simplified mandarin/taught 50/50
spanish is also offered here.
Next year our students will be attending Station Middle School. Our oldest students in the cohort will be in middle school. I’ll send that info next year.
Xie Xie,
Christy
Worldspeak in west los angeles
Is private and has several languages
http://www.worldspeakschool.com 310-441 5222
Elizabeth,
Tremendous thanks for your efforts within the context of the Mandarin parents immersion council! Please add The International Charter School of Atlanta to your immersion program list.
ICSA is a Georgia State public charter school located in Roswell, GA and available to all state residents.
Grade levels offered are K-4 in this inaugural year 2015/16; school will increase a grade level each year moving forward to eventually include K -12.
ICSA offers dual-immersion in Mandarin/Eng German/Eng, French/Eng and Spanish/Eng.
Kindergarteners spend 80% of their educational day in the immersion language.
Comprehensive information on the website at http://www.icsatlanta.org
Added.
So does the school teach simplified or traditional characters? And is it one way or two way immersion (do you have native Mandarin speakers who are learning English as well as native English speakers learning Mandarin?)
Found out how to find Confucius classrooms ,worldwide:
http://english.hanban.org/node_10971.htm
Need to add:
Renascence School International Orange County
Private School
Address: 2987 Mesa Verde Dr E, Costa Mesa, CA 92626
Phone:(714) 783-7070
Advanced Academics and Trilingual Language Immersion in Spanish, Mandarin Chinese and English.
Curriculum inspired by Stanford ME creativity courses and developed at Renascence, drawing from the best curricula around the world, including China, Singapore and South America.
What are the percentages of the day taught in English, Mandarin and Spanish? And does it teach simplified or traditional characters? I’ve called the school in the past to get more information but hadn’t gotten called back.
Elizabeth, this list is fantastic! For Marian Bergeson Elementary School, could you please update the following? The city is Laguna Niguel, and it is a one-way immersion program. Thank you!
Fixed.
Braddock dr elementary school
Lausd
Starting 2 K classes in 2016-17
4711 inglewood blvd
Culver city ca 90230
50/50 immersion
310-391 6707
Principal Eva Lopez
I am from England and plan to visit Vancouver for a month Sept-Oct 2016. I would like to visit an immersion Mandarin-English preschool (0-4 years old). I would be grateful if you could recommend some pre-schools within travel distance of Vancouver (Canada) that I could visit. Many thanks in anticipation.
Hello, My name is Dominique Sanchies and I’m the Admissions Director at The New Century School in Baltimore, MD. We offer language immersion in Mandarin and Spanish and serve students ages 2 through Middle School. I would like to ascertain how our school could be listed on your website as a premiere language school in Baltimore, MD. Learn more about us by visiting http://www.thenewcenturyschool.com.
Sincere regards,
Dominique Sanchies
TNCS | Office of Admissions
admissions@thenewcenturyschool.com
ph | 410-929-4113
Hello, our school has the following errors:
Website: http://www.shurenschool.org (not .com)
We have two campuses:
Pre-Primary Campus: 1333 University Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94702.
K-8 Campus: 2125 Jefferson Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94703.
Also please list this as our contact number and email
Melissa Morgenstern (莫文婷)
Director of Admissions and Communications: (510) 423-0278
melissa.morgenstern@shurenschool.org
Thanks. I’ve updated the list.
Updated. Thanks.
Hi, Elizabeth, yes we are true immersion.
Washington YuYing Public Charter School needs to be added to this list.
Name: Washington YuYing PCD
Address: 220 Taylor Street NE Washington DC 20017
Phone:202-635-1950
Grades:prek3-5th grade
School type: Charter
It’s on the list. It’s been there since the program launched in 2008.
School Name – Braddock Drive Elementary School
School District name – Los Angeles Unified School District
Address- 4711 Inglewood Blvd
City- Culver City
State- CA 90230
Phone
Grades at school – K
Public/private/charter?- public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool) August 2016
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 50/50
Whole school or strand within a school? strand within school
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)] – traditional
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. 2
One-way or two-way immersion?
Website address. http://braddockdres-lausd-ca.schoolloop.com/braddock_mandarin_immersion_los_angeles_culver_city
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.)
Appreciate it. They were on the list, but I’d left the K off of Braddock so this is good, it’s now spelled correctly.
Please remove Gateway School of Language and Culture from Boise Idaho off your list as they have devolved the program. Due to lack of administrative support and district assistance this program is no longer. So very sad.
Thank you so much for including this school on your list. Please keep my email though as I would like to still get updates personally
Thank you
Sent via the Samsung Galaxy S7, an AT&T 4G LTE smartphone
I’m curious as to why Boise remains on the revised list. My husband and I considered moving there, until we saw Vanesa say that the program was no longer running due to lack of administrative support and district assistance.
Good morning,
I noticed the PUC iPrep was not on the list. I provided the info below and hope it can be added to your list. Thanks for mainting this info !
School Name: PUC International Preparatory Academy
School District name: LAUSD
Address: 1800 Colorado BLVD
City: Los Angeles
State: CA
Phone: (866) 531-6048
Grades at school: K-8 (Beginning with K-1st)
Public/private/charter?: Charter
Date the Mandarin immersion program began: Fall 2017
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English: 90:10
( K-2nd 90:10 3rd 70:10 4th-8th 50:50)
Whole school or strand within a school?: Strand
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? Traditional
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade: 1
One-way or two-way immersion?: Two-Way
Website address: http://puciprep.org
Other languages offered?: Spanish 90:10
( K-2nd 90:10 3rd 70:10 4th-8th 50:50)
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium? N/A
Adding to the list.
Thank you very much !
Good morning, I noticed that the list has been updated and that iPrep is now on the list, however, no website is listed. Could the info for iPrep be updated with the following website: http://www.puciprep.org Thanks for your time and for maintaining this list.
I just checked the website for PUCiPrep. The Chinese characters used on their website is Mandarin Simplified. Is it possible to clarify if they are teaching Traditional or Simplified?
Hello Flora. The site does indeed use simplified characters, however, traditional characters will taught. Below you will find the reasoning behind this straight from their charter petition.
“Mandarin language arts will further be taught through the teaching of traditional characters in lieu of simplified characters. Simplified characters were created with decreased strokes and are predominantly used in Singapore and The People’s Republic of China, whereas traditional characters are more complex and used in Taiwan and Hong Kong. PUC iPrep will start teaching traditional characters to support more complex development of visual cues about meaning and sound, which help students access unfamiliar words. Traditional characters are made up of multiple parts that often stand alone with distinct meanings, allowing students to build a foundation for more complex character and word study. As students progress through the grades, they will be exposed to literature with more simplified characters and be exposed to both traditional and simplified characters.”
Add South Fork Elementary in Rigby, Idaho to the list!
http://www.localnews8.com/news/kifi-top-story/students-begin-language-immersion-program/57713213
Thanks, I’d missed that one. I just added it. So there’s a Kindergarten and a first grade class, as well as still being an English strand in the school? And do they used simplified characters, do you know? If the teachers are from China and not from Taiwan than they do. Are they using and specific textbooks?
I wish I knew more, but I live in southern Utah. My husband’s family lives up there, and I made a mental note when I heard they were doing Chinese since my two oldest kids are learning Chinese. I’m pretty sure they recently sent someone to China to interview teachers though 🙂
I just called South Fork Elementary in Rigby, Idaho. Their program currently goes through fourth grade, and they will be starting a fifth grade class next year. It has been a very successful program, and they are not worried that it will flop (like the one in Boise, which you can remove from the list, if you haven’t already). They have every intention of following it through to high school graduation. They do have a curriculum, but told me to contact their district office to find out what it is, which I don’t have time to do right now. The principal’s secretary *thinks* they are teaching simplified characters, but she is not sure. http://jeffersonsd251.org/
Please add Mesa Elementary School from Covina-Valley Unified School District CA to the list. Here is the school link: http://mesa.c-vusd.org/
Thank you!
Just added. Do you know if it will use traditional or simplified characters? And is it 50.50 Mandarin/English time in the classroom? Also, can students enter who speak only English and only Mandarin, or do they have to be English speaking? thanks,
We will use simplified characters and 50/50 model. Students from any language background are welcome. Thank you very much for adding us to the list and thank you for all your effort on establishing this wonderful website.
There is a Chinese bilingual Korean/Mandarin public school in Seoul, South Korea. I don’t know the specific details, but I have a Korean friend whose children attend. The school was designed to help with the Chinese immigrant population that did not speak Korean, but has become so popular that it is now nearly impossible to get in if you are not a foreigner or already have some Chinese language skills.
Found it and added to the list. Thanks for the tip!
Hi. My husband and I are interested in moving to Miami, FL and would like to invest in opening a Mandarin Immersion Private school with a company who already has a successful school in another state. If anyone knows another school that is interested in operating a branch in Miami Fl, please let me know.
I’m not sure there are any companies that are running Mandarin immersion schools. Well, actually, I guess Avenues in NY is one. You might want to check in with them. They’re building a campus in Beijing right now, I believe.
When you start and are running, please let me know so I can send my son there!
Hi Tracy,
My son goes to Foreign Language Immersion School in Orlando, FL. They learn Spanish, Mandarin, French, and English daily. Maybe you can partner? I love the school, but unfortunately they only have up to 6th grade. Will you open a middle school? I found a school in Panama City Beach that has middle school and teaches Spanish, Mandarin and English, but we need a school either in South or Central Florida and thus far I haven’t found a good option for us. Please keep us posted.
Hello,
My name is Susan Acker and I have been quite ambitious the last decade with my school. I’ve been looking for a partner. I have programs in the Northeast area.
Please email me at susanbme@hotmail.com if you’d like to chat.
Susan
This list of Mandarin Immersion schools is great! Thank you so much for maintaining this! I am trying to find out how many schools teach characters only for the first few years and wait until later to teach pinyin. Do you know how I could find this out?
A lot of schools don’t teach pinyin until 2nd or 3rd grade, so that the kids don’t get confused between English spelling and the sounds of each letter and the sounds for pinyin letters. So I’d say it’s the majority that teach them at least a year apart.
My child is beginning a new Chinese language immersion program in the fall of 2017, with the details I know below.
School Name Linden Hill Elementary School
School District name Red Clay Consolidated School District
Address 3415 Skyline Drive, Wilmington
City Wilmington
State 19808
Phone 302.454.3406
Grades at school K-5
Public/private/charter? Public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool)
First class starting 2017-2018 school year
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 50/50
Whole school or strand within a school? Strand
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if in the word for school they write it 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]
Unknown
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. 2 classes
One-way or two-way immersion? Unknown
Website address. http://redclay.schoolwires.net/site/Default.aspx?PageID=2014
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.)
No other immersion languages, but district has multiple Spanish language immersion programs.
Is the school art of the Flagship – Chinese Acquisition Pipeline consortium? Unknown
I accidentally entered zip code in state. This program is in Delaware.
There is also Mulberry House Mandarin Immersion School in Hong Kong https://www.mulberryhouseasia.com/
The Mandarin Chinese Language Immersion Manget School formerly in Bellaire, TX has moved a few miles down the road into a new building near the Galleria area in Houston, TX. The correct website is: http://www.houstonisd.org/mandarinimmersion and the name was shortened to the Mandarin Immersion Magnet School. It is a PreK through 8th grade school. Thanks!!
The list dated 4-27-17 shows only international schools. Can you repost the US list? Thanks.
When you open up the spreadsheet, look on the bottom left-hand corner. You’ll see three tabs – MIP list, International & Cantonese. Just click on MIP list and it will open up for you.
Camelot Academy of Arts Science and Technology
815 Esplanade Orange
Grades pre k to 12
Private
Mandarin program started 6 years ago immersion 3 years ago
50 percent plus
Simplified
Not part of flagship
Advanced academics
Phone 714 602 7794
Mr cheung@mibinders.net
Whole school Spanish and Latin available
Hi, do you know of any schools in Nashville, TN that teaches mandarin k-5?
Thanks!
None in Tenn. that I know of.
I have an update for the West Side Elementary, Allegheny County Public School district (Cumberland MD — Row #122 in the Excel sheet): It looks like the links on the school board’s website have changed, so here is the new link to the school’s page: https://www.acpsmd.org/Domain/66
Also, the eldest class of kids is now in the 5th grade, and we will have some updates soon on what is happening for grades 6-12 in this school district.
Thanks. I’ll update on the list. And do keep me updated about what happens in middle school.
Just wanted to give an update for you here. The program in the Allegany County Public School district in Cumberland MD has extended to Middle school at Braddock Middle School. There are still plans to extend this up through High school, but the first cohort is in 6th grade at this point.
Here’s a recent news article with more information: http://www.times-news.com/news/local_news/chinese-immersion-program-introduces-new-worlds-to-county-students/article_d21c2c59-d052-5ac4-a588-3124ef5e86d0.html
First, I want to thank you for all the work you have done. This website has provided so much helpful information as we started our East Point Academy project 8 years ago (I am the founding Chair of EPA). There are two EPA listed and both are the same EPA but two different campuses. EPA is current building a 30 million dollar new campus but will still keep the Leaphart campus when the new campus opens next year. Also we are now working on to open two more Mandarin Immersion charter schools for 2018-2019 school year. One of them, East Light Academy is on your list and the other one, East Voyager Academy will be located 7429 Tuckaseegee Road, Charlotte, NC 28214. Both school are designed as Prek-8, whole-school focused Mandarin Immersion 75/25 one-way model (so is East Light Academy). Feel free to contact me at wuxyjj@yahoo.com (803-931-6078) if you need more information.
Thank again.
Yes i didn’t see Cleveland campus international, that as well as an immersion school as well and that’s not listed in the list.
The Campus International School isn’t actually an immersion school. Students study Mandarin 30 minutes a day, according to the school web site. They don’t take any academic classes (such as math or history) in Mandarin. To be considered an immersion school they would have to spend at least 50% of the school day studying in Mandarin. It looks like a fantastic school, but it’s not immersion.
Highland Park H.S. in St. Paul MN is now offering a high school continuation program for mandarin immersion. https://www.spps.org/Page/29600
Hi Elizabeth! Thank you for maintaining such a comprehensive blog and database for mandarin immersion schools. Could you please add Shu Ren International School. My name is Melissa Morgenstern and I am the admissions director for the school. We are an independent PreK – G8 school located in Berkeley, California. Our preschool is 100% immersion and our K-8 school uses the Montreal model to introduce English:
Kinder and Grade 1: 80% Mandarin, 20% English
Grade 2: 60% Mandarin, 40% English
Grade 3-5: 50% Mandarin, 50% English
Grade 6-8: 25%-35% Mandarin, 65%-75% English
We also start teaching Spanish in G3.
For more information, please see our website: http://www.shurenschool.org
Please let me know if you have any questions!
ShuRen’s long been on the list.
Oh I see thank you, someone told me they couldn’t find it on the list.
First, I will echo the sentiments of others here: Thank you for compiling this list!
Just pointing out the need for a minor revision: The official city address for Broadway Elementary (Los Angeles Unified School District) is Los Angeles, not Venice. Venice is a neighborhood within the city of Los Angeles, but the name “Venice” is not an officially postal-designated name for the area.
I’ll fix that, thanks!
Good Day , Please update the Coronado Elementary with a 2nd website HigleyMandarin.org
I would like to konw how many Mandarin / Chinese Immersion Schools and Mandarin / Chinese Immersion Programms there are in the USA. Thanks a lot.
I would suggest to put the list on Google docs so that it can stay up-to-date and manage easily.
An interesting idea. But it works well for me now. Will consider for the future
School Name: PS/IS 102Q Bayview School
School District name: Community School District 24
Address: 55-24 Van Horn Street
City: Elmhurst
State: NY
Phone: 718-446-3308
Grades at school: PreK – 8th grade
Public/private/charter?: Public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool): Kindergarten, September 2017 (inaugural class)
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English: 50/50
Whole school or strand within a school?: strand within a school
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]: Traditional
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade: one
One-way or two-way immersion?: two-way
Website address: http://www.ps102Q.org ; (school site)
http://www.schools.nyc.gov/SchoolPortals/24/Q102/default.htm ; (NYC DOE school site)
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.): only Mandarin for dual language
I don’t have a school to add but I want to thank you for this. We are looking for a Chinese immersion program for our child and your website has been tremendously informative. Thanks!
I’m so glad it’s been helpful.
PUC international Charter in Los Ángeles has closed . Florence Nightingale Middle School in LAUSD has added a Mandarin immersion program from 6th to 8th grades .
I’m having a difficult time determining if there is a program in the DC metro area (especially in Northern Virginia). Will you please help me figure this out?
I don’t know of any Mandarin immersion programs in Virginia. In Washington D.C. there’s one, Washington Yu Ying Public Charter School. Maryland has several, but I don’t know how close they are to DC:
Paint Branch Elementary Prince George’s County 5101 Pierce Ave College Park MD
Braddock Middle School Allegheny County Public School 909 Holland St. Cumberland MD
West Side Elementary Allegheny County Public School 425 Paca St Cumberland MD
Reid Temple Christian Academy 11400 Glenn Dale Blvd Glenn Dale MD
Potomac Elementary School Montgomery County Public Schools 10311 River Rd Potomac MD
Bayard Rustin Elementary School Montgomery County Public Schools 332 W. Edmonston Drive Rockville MD
Thank you, I’m just seeing this. 🙂
Hi, I’d like to update our school. I’m the PTA President and have 2 kids there currently. Allen Lee
School Name: Field (Eugene) Elementary School
School District name: Pasadena Unified
Address: 3600 E. Sierra Madre Bl
City: Pasadena
State: CA
Phone:
Grades at school: PreK-5 (The mandarin program continues at Sierra Madre Middle School, but is 2 periods of Chinese, out of 6 periods)
Public/private/charter? Public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool)
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 90/10
Whole school or strand within a school? Whole
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)] Simplified
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade. Usually 4 classes in kinder, and transitions to 3 classes around 2nd-4th grade depending on the year.
Website address. https://www.pusd.us/field
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.) n/a
Thanks. Updated
There are several more Mandarin Schools in St George, Utah. Arrowhead Elementary, Horizon Elementary, Santa Clara Elementary, Three Falls Elementary, Hurricane Intermediate, Lava Ridge Intermediate, and Tonaquint Intermediate. 50/50 strand simplified.
Oh. I forgot Sunrise Ridge Intermediate.
We are considering moving to a state that does not have a mandarin immersion program. I have loved having our son in the program. I have 3 more sons that I want to have the opportunity of an immersion program. How would I start the process of chartering a school or asking the district to consider starting the program? Do you have any contacts for people who have founded these programs?
It’s a long and difficult process. You might want to ask on Facebook, go to the Mandarin Immersion Parent Support group and sign up. It can be done, but takes time and a whole lot of patience…
Do you know of any Mandarin immersion schools that might sponsor a prospective native Chinese teacher for H1b temporary work visa? I will have my Masters and teaching certificate by Apr 2020.
There are many schools across the United States that use teachers on H1b visas, but it’s difficult to find them. You might ask on the Facebook Mandarin Immersion Parent group and see if any parents know if their school is hiring.
Hello,
Our school sponsors Mandarin teachers on the H1-B visa and have done so since 2014. We are a full immersion school in Washington, DC that teaches a strand of Mandarin to children beginning in PK. We just expanded our school to go to the 5th grade. Our school is private and small. Please contact me at director@thesocraticschooloflanguage.com if you would like to learn more. We usually sponsor one committed student each year. Thank you.
Fan Wang, try calling our district dual immersion coordinator. She is always looking for and hand-picking good teachers to bring to our area! I don’t know all the details…doesn’t hurt to ask!
Dual Immersion Coordinator
Marybeth Fuller
marybeth.fuller@washk12.org
T: 435-673-3553 x 5183
I have a granddaughter who will be with me in St George for the summer. Is there a program that would allow her to continue her learning while with me?
St. George, Utah? You might try the Utah Mandarin Immersion Parents Council website:
https://utahimmersioncouncil.org
There are a few Mandarin summer camps in St. George over the summer, if they aren’t full. Call Susan Belnap @ 435-669-7989. My kids are doing them. I’ve heard nothing but good things!
Please add our school:
Marian Bergeson Elementary School
25302 Rancho Niguel Rd,
Laguna Niguel, CA 92677
(949) 643-1540
Public
kindergarden-fifth grade
Kindergarten; 80% Mandarin for 1st grade; 80% 2nd grade; %70 : 3nd/4th/5th grade :50%
Capistrano Unified School District
http://www.bgnes.capousd.ca.schoolloop.com
It’s on the list.
Pioneer Valley Chinese Immersion Charter School is K-12 with an IB program located in Hadley, MA
Yup, they’re on the list. Have been for almost a decade. I’ve had the pleasure of meeting with some of the staff as well. It’s an impressive school.
We are fortunate to have access to partial immersion elementary schools (lottery based), but I have heard progress is poor for Mandarin as the kids don’t speak enough to make real strides in fluency (especially relative to the full immersion Spanish and French language programs run by the county). Do you have a list of full immersion programs? We are located in the DC-Maryland area, but are considering moving before my daughter starts kindergarten. (We both work from home and have the flexibility.)
There’s a full list on this blog, under Mandarin Immersion School List. One of the columns is whole school (100%) or strand (between 50-100%) time in Mandarin.
That said, there is no data showing that a 50/50 program (time in Mandarin, time in English) results in poorer outcomes than a 100% program. and they ALL end up at 50% by 5th grade. In middle school it’s 30% Mandarin. Partial and full immersion are really not good descriptive terms. Any program with more than 50% time in Mandarin K-5 is immersion. Anything less is FLES (foreign language in elementary school) and yes, it probably doesn’t teach much. But if you’ve got actual subject-matter classes (i.e. math, science, social studies) being taught entirely in Mandarin, you’re good to go.
Due to COVID 19 breakout, we are offering free chinese story time for nationwide kids, do you know how we can spread this new to all mandarin immersion schools? thanks.
Hi Tina,
Where you are doing sounds awesome. My son attends a Mandarin immersion school that goes from kindergarten to 8th grade. If you send me the link I can send it to his teacher and she can share the information throughout the school.
Hi Suzi,
please check our website for more details:
https://www.newhopelearning.com/events/sharing-is-caring-free-chinese-story-time
Thanks
TIna
Great thank you!!
Hi Suzi,
With the Covid-19 situation, our company (www.littlechinesereaders.com) works with Chinese immersion schools to provide at-home reading supports. If you have time, I would like to invite you to check out our materials (free code: SUMMER2020) to see if it would be resourceful to parents of your school. Thank you!
Thank you! I will check it out.
Does anyone have suggestions on how to start a Mandarin Immersion Program with a school? Thank you!
Hello Ms. Chen. Our moderator, Ms. Weise has written a wonderful book about Mandarin Immersion programming and it tackles the very question you ask.
However, as a school administrator that has started schools that teach multiple languages, including Mandarin, I know for a fact that good communication with parents and a great plan for the implementation of the program are the best ways to get this done. I am on the East Coast, but will be expanding my schools to another part of the country, but I know that the parents who support our school are the best resource for how our schools have grown. They have been very vocal about their needs, which has helped me shape my program, even though I already had a vision.
Also, being open-minded is also key because you really need to be cognizant of what families are looking for. Not all families have the same needs with the program, so your ability to have outreach with them will be super important.
Also, speaking with school districts is important, but again, I think the most important components are parent groups, like PTOs, PTAs and other family committees. These are the people I have found, who have the most influence and parents who are really active at their children’s schools, typically are ones who know all of the important people making decisions about schools.
I really do not like bureaucracy and politics in what I do, so I started independent multi-lingual schools. I have primarily been able to get my programming into public and charter schools by networking with parents, who had become acquainted with our school in other ways. I have found that with the way I have worked this, few schools have wanted to contribute financially for teachers to be paid, so parents have had to pay. When you do your parent outreach, you will definitely have a conversation about costs because somebody will have to pay for the programming 😉 Just because people cannot pay, does not mean they do not deserve to have access–there may even be people willing to provide Mandarin language services for free, but with this, I would be worried about consistency. Free is fine, but if the ultimate goal is for children to be able to acquire the language, there should be only committed people who are reliable and capable to provide instruction and this most times, comes with a cost.
Overall, it’s a very worthy venture, but it is hard. it is one of the most hardest things I have ever had to do in my life, honestly.
You will also need to be able to network well with prospective teachers who can teach the demographic you are attempting to serve. Just because someone speaks the language and has education, does NOT mean that they will be capable of teaching your demographic. We begin enrollment at our school at age 2 and in the beginning, we had gone through countless teachers in all of the language programs because the teachers were not a fit, but I think we got it right after the first 3 years and we are now in year 8! I think teacher selection is the next most important thing to consider, aside from outreach with families and schools.
There is so much more to starting a Mandarin or other language program, but as a founder and administrator who is still active in my schools, there are the immediate things that jump out at me because they are the things I have been challenged with, the most.
I hope this can help you think about how to set up you plans for a Mandarin program.
Apologies for any typos/incorrect grammar. It’s Sunday afternoon and I have been working all day and am a little tired now 🙂
School Name: Yi Hwang Academy of Language Excellence (YHALE)
School District name: Georgia State-wide Charter school, located in Gwinett county
Address: 4550 River Green Parkway, Suite 100&200
City: Duluth
State: GA
Phone: (404) 623-0003
Grades at school: K-5
Public/private/charter?: Charter
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool): Jan. 2020
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English: 50/50 model
Whole school or strand within a school?: whole school
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]: simplified characters
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade: kindergarten- 3, 1st-2, 2nd-2, 3rd-1, 4th-1, 5th-1
Website address: yhale.org
Other languages offered? (i.e. some schools have multiple immersion strands.): Korean
School Name: Bloomington Elementary
School District name: Washington County
Address:
425 Man O War Road
Saint George, Utah 84790
Phone: 435-673-6266
Grades at school: k-5 dual immersion 1-5
Public/private/charter? Public
Date the Mandarin immersion program began (Kindergarten only, not preschool) no. Actually 1-5
Percentage of the day taught in Mandarin/English. 50%
Whole school or strand within a school? Lottery entrance so not sure how to answer.
Do you teach Simplified or traditional characters? [you can tell if the word for school is written as 学校 (simplified) or 學校 (traditional)]. Son hasn’t started so not sure.
Number of classroom in Mandarin per grade.
Website address: https://bes.washk12.org/
Other languages offered? Just chinese
Yup, it’s on my list.
Fletcher elementary school, Orange Unify School district is not in the list
It is actually. Fletcher Elementary, Orange County Unified. It’s number 80.
Does anyone know a good school in London? I don’t see one listed on the immersion list, but is there something that is decent?
There’s only one I know of, Kensington-Wade. It’s private and abut $25,000 a year.
https://www.kensingtonwade.com/
I don’t know of any others in the UK.
Thank you, that is what I have been finding as well.
Kensingtonwade.com is in the list. It’s a fee-paying school but AFAIK it’s the only mandarin immersion school in England.
Are there any Mandarin immersion primary schools in Melbourne Australia in addition to: http://richmondwestps.vic.edu.au/ and https://www.abbotsfordps.vic.edu.au/page/13/Bilingual-Education
Just want to say thank you. I’m a parent and plan to have my kiddos attend immersion starting kinder. I’m not surprised to see how much the list has grown in the last decade.
Please kindly add Pine Street School. (25 Pine Street, NYC, NY 10005)
Private school K-5.
Phone number: (212) 235-2325
Mandarin program established 2017.
50/50 Model.
Offers Mandarin and Spanish track. Simplified Chinese. http://www.pinestreetschool.com
I don’t believe Pine Street School offers 50% of the academic day in Mandarin, so it doesn’t meet our definition of immersion.
West County Mandarin School has moved from Richmond, CA to Pinole, CA. It is growing into a K-6 elementary school. For the 2022-23 school year it is K-5. There will be a middle school program, but it is unclear yet where it will be. The website for the school is wcmspta.org. (The district website is not updated.) Also, the program is now a 50-50 model. Thanks!
Hi there,
There is a typo of the school name of “Kensington Wade School” in United Kingdom. Also the school moved and the new address is: Kensington Wade School
Fulham Palace Road
London, W6 9ER
Thanks,
Jia
I am hoping to find an option for my 8 th grader to transition to from Sierre Madre Middle school in Pasadena CA, to a high school OTHER than Pasadena High School. She began at Field Elementary and will need to continue Mandarin Immersion. PHS is not a good choice for her. Please advise if possible. Thank you
Hi, I am so glad that we are have more and more great immersion programs here in the States!
Hi, thank you so much for the list, I am a mandarin teacher. And this list is great for me to find a mandarin teaching job.
I’m glad it’s helpful.
This school wasn’t listed – https://www.allsoulsla.org/
I was interested in this school but out of my jurisdiction, distance wise.
ignore my previous comment please, I just realized it’s not alphabetical. 🙂
Thank you
Hello! Thanks for this list. We currently attend HudsonWay in NY. I was checking out the International School of Denver and noted that they actually begin at 90/10 for all ECE (you have them listed as 50/50). They progressively get to 50/50 by later grades. This seems pretty common for all of these schools.
helpful info!